W-227 In-Ground Electronic Dog Fencing System Review

The W-227 In-Ground Electronic Dog Fencing System is a no name brand, cheaply made fence and one I don’t recommend.

Before I go into the details of this dog fence and why it is not one I recommend, let me draw your attention to the in-ground fences that I rate very highly (click on any of them to read the full review):

All of the above electric dog fences have been thoroughly researched and all the customer feedback from them has been fully evaluated to help you make a solid buying decision.

The W-227 bears a passing resemblance to the Innotek SD-2000 in that they both have one progressive level of correction and cost less than $100. But that’s where the similarities end.

The 227 is nowhere near as reliable as the SD 2000 and in their review of this in-ground dog fence consumers complain about everything from the inconsistency of the system to the poor quality of its components.

It would seem that in this case, you really do “get what you pay for” and for less than $50 you don’t get much!

This is the only fence I’ve reviewed where the negative far outweighs the positive and for that reason I’ve decided to forgo my usual review format and get right into what’s good and bad about the W-227.

I’ve listed each of the main components along with their features. After the features you’ll find a list of the most common customer comments and complaints about each component.

W-227 receiver collar — what you get:

2 receiver collars are included in this fence kit.

1 progressive level of static correction that’s preset at the factory and cannot be adjusted to suit your dog’s size or temperament.

Will emit a beep before it delivers the static correction.

Low battery indicator light.

Takes a non proprietary 9v battery. Users put the average battery life at about 3-4 weeks

Receiver unit can be transferred to any other non metallic strap that’s at least 1″ wide but it’s bulky and heavy so not comfortable for tiny dogs.

What do consumers think?

The receiver unit is too bulky and heavy to be comfortable on smaller dogs and the strap is too short to fit larger dogs so the most people recommend it for dogs in the 12-70 lb weight range.

Should have more than 1 level of static correction: This is also one of the complaints about the SD 2000 I mentioned earlier. People find the preset level is too strong for really small dogs and not strong enough for very stubborn dogs or larger dogs.

Receiver unit continually falls off the collar strap: This is very concerning because the receiver unit houses the metal prongs and the prongs deliver the static correction when necessary. No receiver unit means your furry friend is free to leave the yard without receiving any kind of correction.

Random and inexplicable static corrections: If your dog is getting static corrections for no good reason they’ll become confused and fearful. The goal of an in-ground fence is to make your dog feel comfortable within their containment area by giving them clear boundaries so that they know where they should and shouldn’t be.

No warning beep: The receiver collars that come with this in-ground fence are supposed to give your dog a warning beep before issuing a static correction. The warning beep is an ideal feature because it gives your dog a chance to stop moving toward the boundary wire and avoid receiving a static correction. In many instances the W-277 collars skipped the warning beep altogether and went right to the static correction.

Corrections vary from collar to collar: A lot of people complained that the receiver collars activated at different distances from the boundary wire. So if you have 2 dogs on the W-227, one of them might get warning beep 5 feet from the boundary wire and the other might get the warning beep 3 feet from the wire. Yet another indication of the inconsistency of this in-ground fence.

Strap is made out of thin material: It’s flimsy and not durable. On average people were buying new straps every 4-6 months.

W-227 Transmitter — what you get:

A visual and audible wire break alarm.

A control to adjust the width of your dog’s Correction Zone.

But…What do the reviews say?

Made out of a cheap plastic material.

Poor quality: In many cases it failed completely after only 2 or 3 weeks. In some cases it didn’t work right out of the box.

Provides a very inconsistent boundary: Because you’re using boundary wire to define the perimeter of your containment area, an in-ground fence should provide you with a very clear and precise boundary. Time and again the W-227 failed to do that.

Dogs get a static correction randomly and for no reason: Again — this can lead to your dog being fearful and confused.

W-227 Boundary Wire — what you get:

Much too thin and fragile: A lot of people were really frustrated with how often it broke as they were trying to bury it. And not surprisingly, many people were plagued by wire breaks after they had installed the wire also.

Very hard to work with: Because it’s so thin it ends up in tangles as it’s coming off the spool and is really difficult to untangle.

What else comes in the 227 fence kit?

Along with the 3 main components you’ll also get a couple of 9v batteries, 2 sets of metal prongs, a test light tool, 2 screws, 20 training flags and an instruction manual.

The ‘instruction manual’ is a total of 3 pages, gives very little installation information and absolutely no training information.

But for me the most concerning thing is that the vast majority of the people who wrote a review on the W-227 complained about how unsafe and unreliable it is.

And to top it all off, over half the people who bought this system ended up not using it because they just couldn’t get it to work on a consistent basis. So they either returned it or, if the ‘return by’ date had passed, they just chalked it up to lost money and a lesson learned.

What about the company behind the W-227?

Aside from all the issues I’ve just mentioned, another big red flag for me is the lack of information about the company who manufactures the W-227 In-Ground Electronic Dog Fencing System.

When I’m researching an electric dog fence I like to be able to call customer service and get them to answer any questions I may have. This not only helps me understand the fence better but it also gives me an opportunity to see what kind of customer service they provide.

So when I research a fence made by reputable manufacturers such as PetSafe, SportDOG or Innotek I have a variety of ways I can contact customer service; not so with the 227.

When I contacted various sellers to get information about the company who manufactures this in-ground fence I was told that the manufacturing company is based in China and has a strict policy that forbids the sellers to give out any information about them. Hmmm. Sounds very strange to me…

No access to the manufacturer means you won’t be able to get any sort of customer service if you need any help installing the fence or training your dog. And the warranty will be limited to whatever warranty is offered by the company you purchase your fence from, in most cases 30-45 days.

I also asked the sellers about the distribution structure of this in-ground fence and here’s what I was told:

It would appear that after being manufactured, the W-227 is picked up by a bunch of different companies who are then allowed to rebrand it any way they want and distribute it through online networks such as Amazon.com, Rakuten.com and Sears.com.

So depending on where you look online, you’ll see the W-227 marketed under a number of brand names including AGPtek, Esky and Walzy.

I don’t know about you but to me the whole thing is very off putting. A generic fence made by a ‘nameless’ manufacturer in China, no access to any type of customer service, a questionable warranty and an instruction manual that gives you minimal instructions and no training information at all.

Once again let me reiterate: BUYER BEWARE!!

Having said all that, I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you that there are also a small percentage of people who are using the W-227 and have no complaints about it. If you’re interested you can check out some of the customer reviews.

So what’s the bottom line?

The W-227 Smart Dog In-Ground Pet Fencing System is definitely one to avoid!

It will cost you about $50 more but by the time you buy thicker gauge wire, more training flags and waterproof splices you need to install your W-227 fence you’ve more than made up for the difference in price.

And with the SD 2000 you get a much safer and more reliable in-ground fence, Innotek’s excellent customer service, a 1 year warranty and a company that actually puts their name on the product!

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